Missa Eaton was born in Athens, Texas, and currently resides in Sharon, Pa. She received a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas and a master's degree from the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champagne.

Her father worked in a meat packing plant before he joined the Army and went to Vietnam. He returned home to work as a bus driver and a leader in both his labor union and the local Veterans of Foreign Wars branch. Missa's mother worked as a secretary. Her grandparents were farmers and house painters.

An educator, Eaton is an assistant professor of psychology at Pennsylvania State University-Shenango. Earlier in her career, she worked in a wide range of jobs, including retail and real estate.

Eaton and her husband, John, have one child.

Missa Eaton is a political newcomer, having never run for public office. But she has been active in Democratic politics in Mercer County _ she is president of the Democrat Women of Mercer County _ and she campaigned for Sen. John Kerry in the 2004 presidential race, then-Sen. Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential race and ex-U.S. Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper in 2008 and 2010.

She was uncontested in the April 2012 primary for Pennsylvania's 3rd Congressional District seat. She calls herself a fiscal conservative with a moderate voice.

Eaton says she was influenced by her father's Army service in Vietnam and leadership in his local labor union and Veterans of Foreign Wars branch. Despite her father's background in organized labor, she was unable to win the AFL-CIO's endorsement; the union decided not to endorse a candidate in the race between her and Republican Rep. Mike Kelly.

Eaton says her priority is jobs and the economy. She has called for public and private partnerships, incentives for private sector employers to hire, investment in public projects and retraining programs to put people back to work.

She says she is against Republican plans to turn Medicare into a voucher-style program and shift Social Security payroll taxes into private investment accounts. She opposes tax cuts for big oil companies and the wealthiest Americans.

She also opposes GOP efforts to repeal the 2010 health care reform bill, citing the health care bill's protections for people with pre-existing conditions and people under 26. But she also says the law must be changed if it hurts small businesses.

She says she opposes additional gun control. Although she supports abortion rights, she said demand for abortion should be eliminated.